Category: Starlings and Mynas

The Bare-eyed Myna (Streptocitta albertinae) is a large, long-tailed species of starling in the Sturnidae family. Its common name is a reference to the large patch of dark bare skin around the eyes. Due to its superficial resemblance to a magpie, it has been referred to as the Sula Magpie in the past. It is endemic to tropical open lowland forests on the Indonesian islands of Taliabu and Mangole in the Sula Islands. It is threatened by habitat loss.

The Yellow-eyed Starling (Aplonis mystacea) is a species of starling in the Sturnidae family. It is found in Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests. It is threatened by habitat loss.

The Long-tailed Starling (Aplonis magna) is a species of starling in the family Sturnidae. It is endemic to the Schouten Islands off West Papua, in Indonesia, an important area of bird endemism. The species was once treated as part of a superspecies with the Shining Starling. There are two subspecies, the nominate race, which occurs on Biak, and brevicauda, which is found on Numfor Island. It occurs in a wide range of habitats at all altitudes, including natural forest and forest edges, as well as human modified secondary forests and gardens. In spite of its tiny global range the species is not considered threatened by human activities and remains common within its range, and is therefore listed as least concern by the IUCN.

The Long-tailed Starling is a large starling, ranging from 28–41 cm (11–16 in) in length, including the tail. There are no differences between the sexes. The tail is very long, as long or longer than the body in the nominate race, although in the race brevicauda it is only two-thirds as long as the body. In the wild they cock and fan these large tails.[5] The plumage of this species is black with an oily green gloss over the body, although the subspecies brevicauda is less glossy than the nominate. The gloss on the head is bronze coloured and the feathers of the fore-head are bristled. The feet and bill are black, and the iris is brown.

Little is known about the biology of this species. They are conspicuous birds, sitting in prominent open perches in trees in a manner reminiscent of a drongo. Its calls have been described as a series of loud warbles, and it also gives a descending slurred “cheeeuw”. The species occurs in small groups or in pairs, foraging for fruit in trees and in the undergrowth. Nothing is known about its breeding biology apart from that it nests high in trees

Has the same distribution as the Java Sparrow Padda oryzivora, and shows a similar large decline for the same reason. Up to 1960, a common bird within all cultivated areas and in open forest, despite being popular as a cage bird, but from then on exploitation for the trade increased enormously and it can now been found everywhere in cages but scarcely in the wild. In contrast to the Java Sparrow and Bali Starling, attempts to breed the bird in captivity are rather limited, and likely the bird will not sustain the exploitation for long. Has three subspecies: nominate melanopterus from Java (except the SE) and Madura, which is largely white except for a black bastard-wing, flight-feathers, and much of the tail, ssp. tricolor of the eastern 150 km of Java, which differs in having a grey back and largely black greater upper wing-coverts, and ssp. tertius from Bali, which is even less whitish, showing a grey mantle to upper tail-coverts and extensively black upper wing-coverts

The Finch-billed Myna (Scissirostrum dubium), also known as the Grosbeak Myna, Grosbeak Starling, or Scissor-billed Starling, is a species of starling in the Sturnidae family. It is monotypic within the genus Scissirostrum. It is endemic to Sulawesi, Indonesia.

The Yellow-faced Myna (Mino dumontii) is a species of starling in the Sturnidae family. It is found in New Guinea and nearby smaller islands. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests. It formerly included the Long-tailed Myna as a subspecies.

They are social and omnivorous. Their diet often consists insects,spiders,lizards,frogs,eggs,nestling birds and fruit. Most individuals have dark plumage which has a metallic luster.